Sudarshan, T. S., et al., "The Effect of Chromium Oxide Coatings on Surface Flashover of Alumina Spacers in Vacuum", IEEE Transactions on Electrical Insulation, Vol. EI-11, No. 1, March 1976, pp. 32-36, discloses the use of chromium oxide coatings in a high voltage high vacuum environment. Compared with the coating of the instant invention, this chromium oxide coating (1) has a very high Z (atomic number), which makes it unsuitable for use in a nuclear environment; (2) is not a conformal coating because it does not provide mechanical support to the items being coated; and (3) is difficult to apply in that it has to be vacuum deposited, whereas the present invention can be sprayed or brushed onto the electrical circuit.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,373 discloses a thermally conducting and electrically insulating resin composition suitable for use in high temperature high humidity conditions. Compared with the present invention, the composition disclosed in this reference: (1) uses boron oxide, a nonconductor, rather than elemental boron, a semiconductor; (2) does not protect electrical circuits against patch charging; (3) electrically insulates, but does not leak off excess electrical charges; (4) is not suitable for use in a vacuum, where humidity is zero; (5) has a surface resistivity of at least 10.sup.10 ohms-cm (about 10.sup.12 ohms per square), whereas the present invention has a maximum surface resistivity of 10.sup.12 ohms per square; and (6) uses magnesium oxide, which has an undesirably high secondary electron emission coefficient (SEEC).
U.S. Pats. Nos. 3,779,988 and 3,843,675 disclose techniques for fabricating composite material using elongated boron fibers. Such composites differ from the coating of the present invention in that: (1) the boron fibers are vastly bigger than the present invention's boron particles, which have a maximum size of 20 microns; (2) the reference composites are not thin coatings having thicknesses of less than 0.01 inch which conformally coat electrical components; and (3) the boron fibers are introduced to give mechanical strength to the composite, not to regulate the electrical characteristics of the substance; no suggestion is made for using the composites to solve the problem of flashovers in a high voltage high vacuum environment.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,649,542 discloses a composition which, when applied to an insulator, counteracts the adverse consequences of voids in the insulator. The substance comprises polyethylene and less than 10% by weight of metallic salts of xanthogenic acid.